THE IMPORTANCE OF DISCOVERY - PART 2 - Organization!!!

 

THE IMPORANTANCE OF DISCOVERY

PART 2

Organization!

    Something I don't think can be stressed enough in the legal field is the need to be organized.  In my opinion, this is not something that is optional. You cannot be semi-organized.  You can not be organized only when necessary.  You have to be organized from the start, and you need some type of a method to stay organized. 

    Some larger firms may have a procedure you have to follow.  Some may let you take the lead, i.e., there's not a required way to be organized but it is expected that you will be (like the smaller firm that I work for).  Regardless of the way the firm, office, or even corporation or government agency you may work for is set up, you must be organized too!

    The topic of this mini-series of blog posts I am completing is regarding discovery, and therefore my focus will be on how I feel organization directly relates to the discovery process.  As you may have read in my prior post, the first step in discovery, again in my opinion, is to get to know the rules in your jurisdiction regarding discovery requests.  

    But then what??

    You sent out the requests for documents, you tracked the deadline, and now you have hundreds of pages to filter through.  It's okay! Breathe!  

    This is how I generally tackle these projects:

    1.    I spread out the documents for review.  If you don't have enough space or quiet at your desk, grab find out if you can reserve a conference room for yourself. Most firms have small areas you can go to. 

    2.    I then sort documents - bank statements, mortgage statements, land records etc.  I then find it helpful to further sort them, i.e., individual statements, joint statements, etc.  

    3.   Once I've sorted, I inventory the documents.  To do this, I use a simple spreadsheet with basic categories, as follows:

    You can clearly set up your spreadsheet to include more detailed fields if that helps you with your organization.  The reason I love my inventory is it ultimately becomes a cheat sheet for me!  Now when my attorney asks if I have bank statements from the Plaintiff, I can jump to that section and cite the bank(s), account number(s), dates of statements, and the last time we received those documents.  It's incredibly helpful - especially when preparing for hearings or conferences!  As a side note, I find it helpful to ensure the parties are listed on the top center of the document, i.e., Jones v. Jones, Docket No.: ABC-123-XYZQRS.  In the top right corner I note the date the inventory was last updated.  Finally, I find it helpful to list on the top left the dates production requests were sent, sort of a quick reference cheat sheet.

    4.    Scan!!!  This is so important.  Yes, it can be very time consuming, but it's well worth the time! There are a couple of reasons for this that I can immediately think of. 

            a)    Something happens to your paper file. (Maybe your attorney spilled their coffee....) No problem! You can duplicate the records!

            b)      You need to redact information.  Easy in Adobe Pro and similar programs!!  And you can maintain a clean and redacted copy. 

            c)     E-discovery and e-production are huge!  Being able to quickly find documents makes you more productive.  Who wants to scan every time they need to send something? Or pull a file every time they need to review a document?

        Your scanned file should be a clone of your physical file to the greatest extent possible.  (As an aside, when you go to close your file, because you've been scanning all along, you will already have everything scanned!)

    5.    File physical copies into folders, or in binders with tabs.  This I've done both ways and find that when space allows, I prefer binders.  You may or may not want/need a coding system for labels or tabs.  When using folders, since I primarily work in family law, I found it helpful to have different colored labels for the Plaintiff, Defendant, children's assets and joint assets.  

    6.    Keep it updated! This is critical! When you get new documents, add them to the inventory, scan them and file them!  You don't want to forget a document or let the pile become unnecessarily huge if you can avoid it. 

 

    Having a handle on your document production is crucial to the success of any case, no matter how big or small. I hope these tips are helpful!

    Is there something you do that helps you keep control of your document production that you would like to see shared with your collogues?  Let me know in the suggestions section on the left side of the screen! 

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